Comment

Comments on stories are a way for RN Drive listeners to contribute to and discuss the program.

Comments are moderated. Before you contribute, we recommend you read our house rules.

Reply

Author

Email

Date/Time

10 Dec 2016 3:41:17am

Text

PreviousMessage

I watched the 'Korean on the bus' video. It was appalling.

That being said, my wife, and the love of my life, is Korean. And I am a teacher, Australian citizens are encouraged to go to Korea and contribute to their education system. Which I have always tried my best to do whenever I have taught there, which has been a couple of times.

The people there treated me just as appallingly on many occasions, I never felt welcome very much. Nobody ever invited me to do anything with them outside of work hours, or really tried to make friends with me at all. On one memorable occasion, workmen threw rocks at me when I tried to ask them for directions through a suburb in which I was lost. Yet I receive good student and faculty evaluations of my work performance in any country I teach, and my field is languages and culture, I do not think I exhibit any characteristics that would particularly invite this kind of response. I chose my occupation because I wanted to make friends with and help out people of other cultures!

Would that the whole world could recognise what qualities walk hand in hand with racism, and unite against these evils in every context. You have a point in the respect that all societies should be as self-critical as ours is learning to be. I am not sure they are, which leads to an over-emphasis on Western people as the sole perpetrators.

Please note that there is limit per post of 3,000 characters, including spaces, carriage returns and punctuation (about 500 words). Your email address will not be published.